So much so that I preordered Dead Space 2 a few years ago with the intention of powering through it just like I did with its predecessor. I only ended up playing about an hour or so. It wasn’t that I disliked the game. I just got distracted with school or other games and never got back into it.

But with the release of Dead Space 3 this week, I thought it would be a good chance to give Dead Space 2 another chance. And I’m glad I did. Not only did I finally finish this fantastic game, but I also grew to appreciate the little changes to the standard third-person shooter genre that makes the game so fun to play.

“Portal 2” is a much larger game than the original, eschewing the latter’s densely packed rooms and corridors for sprawling, wide-open areas. Puzzle-solving is extremely satisfying, as the puzzles tend to be delightfully difficult and follow simple rules. Even when new mechanics, such as gels that coat walls and change how the player interacts with the environment, are introduced, the game ramps up the difficulty slowly by starting with simple tutorial puzzles and iterating on these concepts.

To Bungie’s immense credit, there are enough fantastic set pieces that players won’t have any trouble finding the motivation to set aside eight hours to beat the game despite the flat narrative. The tried and true Halo combat has returned; one of the game’s strengths is how physical and weighty gunfire and melee attacks feel, making every combat situation dynamic, difficult and immensely satisfying. There’s a stunning amount of variety throughout the ten or so missions, and just when an event starts to overstay its welcome, the game shunts the player off to do something new.

“God of War 3” is competent, but it will leave many players unhappy. The hackneyed ending will disappoint fans invested in Kratos’ story, and the developers’ slavish devotion to stale game mechanics won’t appeal to new players experienced in similar games that have more depth.

Beat Hazard is a flashy dual-stick shooter that uses music tracks to generate levels, resembling a fusion of Geometry Wars and Audiosurf. The $10 price tag and promise of unlimited user-generated tracks is appealing, but this independently developed game suffers from problems that will limit players’ long-term interest in this quirky title. Read more…

“Mega Man 10” is a loving tribute to classic gaming. Gamers who grew up on the series will embrace the game’s retro difficulty, but players who lack that nostalgia will likely find only frustration or boredom. For most, the game will serve better as a history lesson – a glimpse into what video games used to be, faults and all.

Few people will play “Heavy Rain” and have the same experience, which is the game’s greatest strength. The ending is a collection of countless variables based on a player’s successes, failures and snap decisions. Because of this, “Heavy Rain” is intimately personal in a way other mediums could never hope to emulate.